Mass Spectrometry – A Textbook: Book & Website

This website offers problems and solutions corresponding to each chapter of “Mass Spectrometry – A Textbook”, 3rd edition.

Please create your bookmark, if you are interested in learning about mass spectrometry, mass spectral interpretation, instrumentation, and the full range of ionization methods. Here, you find a total of about 100 pages with many exercises covering all 15 chapters of the book. Practicing MS becomes straightforward as each the problem pages is linked to a dedicated answer page.

Scope of “Mass Spectrometry – A Textbook”

In the light of an ever-growing abundance of methods, instruments, tools, and rules in mass spectrometry the ease of how a complex field of analytical science can be grasped mentally certainly deserves attention. Therefore, emphasis of my work was on refinement in terms of presentation, convenience of use, and ease of learning. Obviously, a textbook ranging around 900 pages may deter the novice, and thus, the focus was on a didactic and educational approach. Although the actual number of pages has notably increased once again, you will find the textbook easier to read and you will benefit when transferring theory in actual practice such as spectral interpretation and method selection.

 

Identification of unknowns by MS
automated DIP in operation

Therefore, this third edition of the highly successful textbook, acclaimed for its comprehensiveness, accuracy, and excellent illustrations and photographs now comes with updated coverage plus numerous didactical improvements:
Numerous passages have been rewritten and improved while remaining short and concise. Care has been taken not only to explain how, but also why things are done a particular way.
The number of figures has been notably increased and about one third of them are now in full color. More photographs and schematics mean easier comprehension of contents, often providing valuable insight into the practical aspects of instrumentation and according procedures.
Flow charts have been introduced to describe procedures, approaches to mass spectral interpretation, or aid in decision making.
Bulleted enumerations have been introduced wherever a larger number of features, arguments, assumptions, or properties regarding a subject warrant a clear presentation.
More examples, especially of methods and applications are given and some how-to-style paragraphs provide practical guidance.
Examples and notes now come with a short subheading that immediately tells what the particular section is all about.
All chapters conclude with a concise summary that is subdivided into compact sections highlighting the basic concepts of the subject area, its figures of merit, typical applications, and its role in current MS. Chapter 4 (Instrumentation) provides dedicated summaries for each type of mass analyzers.
Digital object identifiers (DOIs) are included in the lists of references to facilitate the retrieval of references for e-book users. For those of you who, like me, still prefer a hard bound book, the DOIs offer an additional level of comfort.
Since the second edition, new techniques have gained importance and some instrumentation has received notable attention and attained considerable commercial success. To keep pace with recent developments, Chap. 4 now includes TOF instruments with folded flight paths, the dynamically harmonized FT-ICR cell, more on hybrid instruments and ion-mobility-mass spectrometry. The increasing relevance of high-resolution and accurate mass measurements is even stronger reflected in Chap. 3. The five chapters dedicated to soft ionization methods (CI, APCI, APPI, FAB, LSIMS, FI, FD, LIFDI, ESI, LDI, MALDI) as well as those on ambient desorption/ionization (DESI, DART, REIMS etc.) and on tandem mass spectrometry have been substantially updated and upgraded. There is also much more on chromatographic techniques (GC, LC) and their coupling to mass spectrometry in Chap. 14.
The way we are using books and literature in general has dramatically changed during the last decade. Today, even textbooks are being extensively used in their e-book versions. This had also some impact on the layout and production process of this book.